A decorated Marine veteran went viral for holding a one-man Black Lives Matter protest by taking a knee and standing in scorching heat for several hours.
Todd Winn is a retired Marine from Utah who took to Salt Lake City where he stood in front of the Utah State Capitol for three hours despite the 99°F heat and the fact that he suffers from chronic fatigue due to injuries he suffered while serving.
As seen in one of the photos taken by photographer Robin Pendergrast, the excruciating heat caused the veteran’s rubber shoes to start melting.
Nevertheless, the veteran, who earned two Purple Hearts, pulled through his three-hour protest during which his mouth was taped shut with ‘I can’t breathe’ written on the tape.
The Marine was also wielding a sign that read:
“Justice for George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tamir Rice, Countless Others. Accountability for failed TTPs [tactics, techniques, and procedures] and EOF Abuse [escalation of force].”
According to the veteran’s girlfriend, Katie Steck, her partner has been very upset “by the injustices” that have recently fired up protesters all around the nation.
“He has been very angered and appalled by the injustices that have been happening,” Steck said in an interview with KSL-TV.
“Seeing a lot of things that have happened, that’s not the kind of America he wants,” she added. “… That’s not what he wants to represent.”
Winn’s one-man protest followed two weeks after the tragic death of George Floyd who passed away after fired officer Derek Chauvin was filmed kneeling on his neck for several minutes. Chauvin has since been charged with second-degree murder whereas his wife filed for a divorce.
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